Anti-Gambling Groups Rally US Congress

Various family advocacy groups in thirteen states are calling on the United States Congress to ban states from legalizing online casino games in a recent letter. Their position is that the effects on society will outweigh the monetary benefits.

The groups are from Wisconsin, Kentucky, Louisiana, North and South Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Hawaii, Georgia and Tennessee. They are specifically calling on the United States Congress to bolster the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act in an effort "to ensure its clear intent that the Internet not become a giant online casino."

In December of last year, the United States Department of Justice ruled that in-state online bets that do not involve sports teams are within the parameters of the law. This has pushed states looking to increase their tax revenue to consider top rated online casinos as an option.

In reference to the Department of Justice’s decision, the groups wrote that the decision "unleashed actions by a growing number of revenue-hungry state governments to turn the Internet into the largest casino ever, and welcoming into homes a greater social cost than any government can handle. This action is undermining Congress’ clear intent when it passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act in 2006 that online gambling should be prohibited."

Kent Ostrander, founder of The Family Foundation of Kentucky stated, "The bottom line is we are The Family Foundation, and expansion of gambling through casinos or online is targeting one group only: moms and dads. It’s an effort to separate a family from its assets. The family is the building block of any society, and yet it is the most vulnerable institution in that society."

He went on to say, "We are going to find ourselves with more broken homes and families than we can afford.”